Imane Khelif hits back at Trump after ex-president calls her man following Olympic gold medal win
BOZEMAN, MONTANA: Imane Khelif has delivered a blistering response to Donald Trump after the former president used a shocking gender slur to deride her following her stunning Olympic gold medal victory.
Trump ridiculed the Algerian boxer at a rally in Montana, incorrectly labeling Khelif as transgender based on her alleged male "XY chromosomes."
Imane Khelif sues Elon Musk and JK Rowling for cyber harassment
The 25-year-old Imane Khelif, who faced intense scrutiny over her eligibility to compete in women’s boxing, has not only taken legal action in France, naming prominent figures like Elon Musk and JK Rowling in a cyberbullying lawsuit but she’s also delivered a powerful rebuke to Donald Trump during an interview with El Birad in Algeria.
"Immediately after there was a lot of noise from politicians, athletes, stars, artists — Elon Musk and Donald Trump and that hurt me a lot, I cannot describe how scared I was," the Olympian revealed, as per the Daily Mail.
"This affected me. I'm not lying to you, it affected me a lot. It hurt a lot. I can't describe the fear I had but thank God I was able to overcome it. Thank god, all the people of Algeria and the Arab world knew Imane Khelif with her femininity, her courage, her will," she added.
Khelif continued with raw intensity, saying, “It was a very scary scenario. Honestly, I don’t like to get into politics in sports, but they got politics into sport. Sports and politics are two separate things. These politicians who are oppressing me, they don’t have the right to say I am transgender."
"This is a big shame for my family, for the honor of my family, for the honor of Algeria, for the women of Algeria and especially the Arab world. The whole world knows I am a Muslim girl,” she further said.
Donald Trump criticized Imane Khelif in Bozeman's speech
In his Bozeman speech, Donald Trump said, "Who wants men to participate in women’s sports? I would like to congratulate the young woman who has evolved from a man to a woman. He... She won gold. What about the woman, the beautiful woman, from Italy? She went in there and had no idea what was going on. She's a very good boxer - but only against other women."
Trump: And I'd like to congratulate the young woman who transitioned from a man into a boxer. You saw he won. She won the gold medal. pic.twitter.com/PXY01K7i4B
— Acyn (@Acyn) August 10, 2024
Trump also dramatized the impact of the punch delivered by Angela Carini, who withdrew just 46 seconds into her fight with Khelif after being hit on the nose. Carini, visibly shaken, admitted she had never experienced such a hard hit before.
Trump said, "He did this. She immediately, wow, nobody has ever hit me that hard. Then he does it again and she immediately gives up." [sic]
Imane Khelif defends her identity
Imane Khelif, who is not a transgender woman, was allegedly disqualified from the 2023 World Championships due to male "XY chromosomes," which resulted in failed gender eligibility tests administered by the now-banned International Boxing Association.
Reflecting on her Olympic victory, Khelif said, "For eight years, this has been my dream, and I'm now the Olympic champion and gold medalist. That also gives my success a special taste because of those attacks. We are in the Olympics to perform as athletes, and I hope that we will not see any similar attacks in future Olympics."
"I'm fully qualified to take part in this competition. I'm a woman like any other woman. I was born as a woman, I live as a woman, and I am qualified," she added.
